IX. 1945-1992
(AP Periods 8 & 9)
America emerges from World War II as the most powerful nation in human history. With this power comes new world-wide responsibilities, many of which challenge the Nation in ways never expected, forever altering society, politics, and the economy.
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TIME PERIODS
AP Periods/Units 8 & 9 (1945-1992) AP READING Chapter 35. The Cold War Begins, 1945-1953 Chapter 36. American Zenith, 1952-1963 Chapter 37. The Stormy Sixties, 1963-1973 Chapter 38. Challenges to the Postwar Order, 1973-1980 Chapter 39. The Resurgence of Conservatism, 1980-1992 - COLLEGE PREP. READING Chapters 18-25 POLITICAL TIMELINE
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AP Tools for Success
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Themes (Use these to tie evidence together across time periods for easy "complex thinking." TIP-Choose one with which to focus for the year.):
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Historical Thinking Skills (Use these to practice the skills graders are looking for on AP Rubrics.):
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Document Analysis Acronym (Use this when analyzing documents to add the words--actually use the words in responses-- and skills graders are looking for on AP Rubrics.):
C-Context (This is often used as 'H' for Historical Situation.)
A-Audience
P-Point of View (POV)
P-Purpose
A-Audience
P-Point of View (POV)
P-Purpose
Hot War to Cold War
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At the end of World War Two, as Nazi Germany writhed in its final death agony, the Allies gave concessions to Stalin and the Soviet Union for future spheres of influence in Eastern Europe (see the Percentages Agreement). As the post-war would unfold it became clear that Stalin sought, not the division of influence in Eastern Europe, but for control for himself. With Stalin's encouragement of communist groups in other parts of devastated Europe, the natural antagonism of Communism and Capitalism would split former allies into enemies.
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Many look to Churchill's description of an "Iron Curtain" descending upon Europe to mark the beginning of the Cold War between the Soviet Union and the Western Democracies.
Churchill's speech, March 5, 1946 Westminster College, Fulton, Missouri "From Stettin in the Baltic to Trieste in the Adriatic, an iron curtain has descended across the Continent. Behind that line lie all the capitals of the ancient states of Central and Eastern Europe. Warsaw, Berlin, Prague, Vienna, Budapest, Belgrade, Bucharest and Sofia, all these famous cities and the populations around them lie in what I must call the Soviet sphere, and all are subject in one form or another, not only to Soviet influence but to a very high and, in many cases, increasing measure of control from Moscow." |
The United States effort to rebuilding of Europe through the Marshall Plan, its adoption of the Truman Doctrine, in addition to the continued spread of Soviet influence would lead to, by the 1950s and 1960s, a world-wide effort to contain the spread of Communism. But future conflict would be much more dangerous as it now had the potential to include nuclear weaponry!
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IXa. Analyzing & Comparing
Documents/SAQ/MCQ Practice
From The American Pageant Teacher Resource Guide, Cengage Learning
Who was responsible for the Cold War?
Documents/SAQ/MCQ Practice
From The American Pageant Teacher Resource Guide, Cengage Learning
Who was responsible for the Cold War?
Walter LaFeber, America, Russia, and the Cold War, 1945—1984 (1985).
"Having failed to budge the Russians in face-to-face negotiations, even when backed by atomic bombs, the State Department next tried to buckle Stalin’s iron fence with economic pressures.... More important, it made American officials ponder the awful possibility that Stalin’s ambitions included not only strategic positions in Eastern Europe, but the imposition of Communist regimes upon Asia and the Middle East. Stating the Soviet dictator’s alternatives in this way no doubt badly distorts his true policies.... Stalin’s thrusts after 1944 were rooted more in the Soviets’ desire to secure certain specific strategic bases, raw materials, and above all, to break up what Stalin considered to be the growing Western encirclement of Russia. . . However, American officials saw little reason to worry about such distinctions."
John Lewis Gaddis, The United States and the Origins of the Cold War (1972).
"If one must assign responsibility for the Cold War, the most meaningful way to proceed is to ask which side had the greater opportunity to accommodate itself, at least in part, to the other’s position, given the range of alternatives as they appeared at the time. Revisionists have argued that American policy-makers possessed greater freedom of action, but their view ignores the constraints imposed by domestic policies.... The Russian dictator was immune from pressures of Congress, public opinion, or the press.... This is not to say that Stalin wanted a Cold War.... But his absolute powers did give him more chances to surmount the internal restraints on his policy than were available to his democratic counterparts in the West."
QUESTIONS
1. How does each of these historians see American and Soviet motives in the Cold War?
2. On what basis does each assign primary responsibility for initiating Cold War conflicts?
3. How would each of these historians likely interpret the confrontation over Greece and the Truman Doctrine?
"Having failed to budge the Russians in face-to-face negotiations, even when backed by atomic bombs, the State Department next tried to buckle Stalin’s iron fence with economic pressures.... More important, it made American officials ponder the awful possibility that Stalin’s ambitions included not only strategic positions in Eastern Europe, but the imposition of Communist regimes upon Asia and the Middle East. Stating the Soviet dictator’s alternatives in this way no doubt badly distorts his true policies.... Stalin’s thrusts after 1944 were rooted more in the Soviets’ desire to secure certain specific strategic bases, raw materials, and above all, to break up what Stalin considered to be the growing Western encirclement of Russia. . . However, American officials saw little reason to worry about such distinctions."
John Lewis Gaddis, The United States and the Origins of the Cold War (1972).
"If one must assign responsibility for the Cold War, the most meaningful way to proceed is to ask which side had the greater opportunity to accommodate itself, at least in part, to the other’s position, given the range of alternatives as they appeared at the time. Revisionists have argued that American policy-makers possessed greater freedom of action, but their view ignores the constraints imposed by domestic policies.... The Russian dictator was immune from pressures of Congress, public opinion, or the press.... This is not to say that Stalin wanted a Cold War.... But his absolute powers did give him more chances to surmount the internal restraints on his policy than were available to his democratic counterparts in the West."
QUESTIONS
1. How does each of these historians see American and Soviet motives in the Cold War?
2. On what basis does each assign primary responsibility for initiating Cold War conflicts?
3. How would each of these historians likely interpret the confrontation over Greece and the Truman Doctrine?
MCQs
STIMULUS
"American policymakers interpreted Soviet actions after World War II as evidence of a broad campaign for global communist expansion. However, Soviet leaders were primarily motivated by a desire to ensure national security through buffer zones and to prevent what they perceived as Western encirclement. Meanwhile, the structure of the Soviet political system allowed its leaders to act with fewer internal constraints than those faced by American officials, who had to consider public opinion and congressional pressures."
QUESTIONS
1. Which of the following best describes the historical interpretation reflected in the first part of the excerpt?
(A) Traditionalist interpretation emphasizing Soviet aggression
(B) Revisionist interpretation emphasizing American overreaction
(C) Post-revisionist interpretation emphasizing shared responsibility
(D) Conservative interpretation emphasizing military alliances
2. The argument that Soviet leaders had greater freedom of action than American policymakers is most closely associated with which of the following interpretations of the Cold War?
(A) Revisionist
(B) Traditionalist
(C) Post-revisionist
(D) Marxist
3. Based on the excerpt, which of the following policies would most likely be interpreted as an overreaction by historians who emphasize Soviet security concerns?
(A) The Marshall Plan
(B) The Truman Doctrine
(C) The Yalta Conference agreements
(D) The Neutrality Acts
STIMULUS
"American policymakers interpreted Soviet actions after World War II as evidence of a broad campaign for global communist expansion. However, Soviet leaders were primarily motivated by a desire to ensure national security through buffer zones and to prevent what they perceived as Western encirclement. Meanwhile, the structure of the Soviet political system allowed its leaders to act with fewer internal constraints than those faced by American officials, who had to consider public opinion and congressional pressures."
QUESTIONS
1. Which of the following best describes the historical interpretation reflected in the first part of the excerpt?
(A) Traditionalist interpretation emphasizing Soviet aggression
(B) Revisionist interpretation emphasizing American overreaction
(C) Post-revisionist interpretation emphasizing shared responsibility
(D) Conservative interpretation emphasizing military alliances
2. The argument that Soviet leaders had greater freedom of action than American policymakers is most closely associated with which of the following interpretations of the Cold War?
(A) Revisionist
(B) Traditionalist
(C) Post-revisionist
(D) Marxist
3. Based on the excerpt, which of the following policies would most likely be interpreted as an overreaction by historians who emphasize Soviet security concerns?
(A) The Marshall Plan
(B) The Truman Doctrine
(C) The Yalta Conference agreements
(D) The Neutrality Acts
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FALLOUT OF FEAR:
The Second Red Scare
The Cold War Hits Home: Who is Un-American?
Senator "Joe" McCarthy--the epitome of manipulation, and architect of baseless charges for self-promotion (McCarthyism).
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A Second Red Scare overcame the United States in the late 1940s and early 1950s, as the Soviet Union continued its prewar, self-stated policy to expand Communism worldwide. The fear of this expansion, combined with shocking examples of spying within the United States and the West, convinced many that the threat to America was from within as well as without. The resulting loyalty oaths, investigative committees, blacklisting, and grandstanding fear-mongering led to challenges to the American ideals of freedom of speech and thought.
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Soon to come--Alger Hiss
Blacklisting in Hollywood
One of the most famous outcomes of the fear of Communism was the convening of a House Committee on Un-American Activities (HUAC). All that was needed to destroy a reputation was accusation, rumor, and fear.
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Gordon Khan's Story
The Classic Point of Order
Watch as Army Special Counsel Joe Welch helps dismantle McCarthyism, below!
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AP COMPLEX THINKING:
The Red Scare, Sacco and Vanzetti vs The Rosenbergs, Second Red Scare . . .
The Red Scare, Sacco and Vanzetti vs The Rosenbergs, Second Red Scare . . .
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Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, Atomic Spies.
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Class Activities
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Red Dot Simulation Here’s a clear, classroom-friendly way to run the Red Dot Simulation, which helps students experience the fear, suspicion, and social tension of the First Red Scare or McCarthyism. PurposeThe activity simulates how suspicion and paranoia can spread in a community when people are accused of being part of a hidden, threatening group. It connects directly to historical events like the Red Scare, where fear of communism led to accusations, investigations, and damaged reputations. Materials Needed
Would you like me to prepare that? |
Red Scares Venn Diagram
EVIDENCE First Red Scare (1917–1920)
BOTH (Similarities)
Second Red Scare (Late 1940s–1950s)
EXTENSION IDEAS SAQ 1. Identify ONE major difference between the First and Second Red Scares. 2. Explain ONE way both Red Scares affected civil liberties in the United States. 3. Explain which Red Scare had a greater impact on American society? TEACHING TIP Encourage students to reference specific events, policies, or individuals to strengthen their answers. |
Great Depression to
Economic
Prosperity
William Levitt and the Making of Modern America
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Good video from "THIS HOUSE."
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Lecture: The American Dream, 1946-1960.
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The post-World War Two years brought anxiety and fear, but they also brought one the most secure and stable eras of prosperity that Americans had ever known. What stopped the Great Depression from returning after World War II? What limitations still prevented all Americans from from achieving the most the Era had to offer? Was this Era the product of the "Greatest Generation," forged by depression and war?
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Clothing Styles of the 1950s
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"The Times They Are
A-Changin"
-Bob Dylan
The 1950s and early 1960s make way for the greatest change in the shortest amount of time in American history!
Elvis! Innocence in Rebellion.
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The forces that transformed the 1960s into a time of massive social change can all be traced back to the 1950s. The biggest evidence of a changing America was manifest in a young man from Memphis playing a new style of music--Rock and Roll/Bop. The results of this man and his music helped create a widening generation gap, and further integration of society. Click on the right to watch The ABC News Special hosted by the late Peter Jennings, "Memphis Dreams."
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WWII Veterans Fight New Battles
Cesar Chavez, leader of, and advocate for, powerless farm workers.
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It is not an accident that men, having fought the "Great Crusade" against Totalitarianism in World War Two and served their nation in the Cold War, should return to lead the struggle against tyranny they experienced at home.
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Jacky Robinson, integrator of Major League Baseball
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The Other America
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The Atomic Bomb and
the Cold War 
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Nuclear
Devastation America's atomic bomb helped win World War Two. As other countries developed their own atomic weapons, and the Cold War began, the testing of ever more powerful nuclear bombs increased at a pace that may seem incredible.
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SIMULATION!You are Soviet First Secretary Khrushchev, c. 1962. can you help maintain the balance of power with the United States? Let's see how your decision-making stands up to the test of time.
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IXb. Exam Skills: The Non-Stimulus SAQ
From The American Pageant Teacher Resource Guide, Cengage Learning
Cold War Confrontation & "Peaceful Co-Existence?"
From The American Pageant Teacher Resource Guide, Cengage Learning
Cold War Confrontation & "Peaceful Co-Existence?"
SAQ
Answer parts a, b, and c.
a) The Cold War in the 1950s fluctuated between periods of direct and indirect military confrontation and periods of mutual coexistence. Briefly explain ONE reason for this change over time.
b) Briefly explain ONE specific example of either direct or indirect military confrontation between the United States and Soviet Union or mutual coexistence in the 1950s.
c) Briefly explain ONE specific domestic or international consequence of the example you chose.
Answer parts a, b, and c.
a) The Cold War in the 1950s fluctuated between periods of direct and indirect military confrontation and periods of mutual coexistence. Briefly explain ONE reason for this change over time.
b) Briefly explain ONE specific example of either direct or indirect military confrontation between the United States and Soviet Union or mutual coexistence in the 1950s.
c) Briefly explain ONE specific domestic or international consequence of the example you chose.
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The Power of Television
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The Election of 1960. By 1960, most Americans had the ability to readily watch television. The election of that year was a watershed moment in American politics. The majority of those who listened to the first televised presidential debate between Vice-President Nixon and Congressman Kennedy thought that Nixon had won. Those that watched this momentous moment on television thought that Kennedy had done a better job of delivering his message. Watch and decide for yourself! A new epoch had arrived--The Army-McArthy Hearings, the 1960 Election, and soon Civil Rights and Vietnam--it would be television that would shape the 20th century!
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The Struggle for Our National
Convictions
America's Civil Rights Movement: A Time For Justice
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"America's Civil Rights Movement depicts the battle for civil rights as told by its foot soldiers. They rode where they weren't supposed to ride, walked where they weren't supposed to walk, and sat where they weren't supposed to sit--They stood their ground until they won their freedom." Click to the right to watch a video from the Southern Poverty Law Center, "A Time for Justice." Below see charts covering African-American organizations of this era (I got this great information from a friend at an AP grading years ago.)
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The amazing John Lewis, warrior for human dignity. You need to research him! He is at the forefront of every battle! Spot him in the video below--marcher #1.
The charts below were given to me by a reader in Louisville. Great resources like these were a common experience when the AP Exam was grading in person.
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On Rosa's Bus, National Civil Rights Museum, Memphis.
"Take My Hand, Precious
Lord." The Lorraine Motel, National Civil Rights Museum. |
Differing African-American Opinions from Dr. King
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By 1965 Dr. King's message of non-violence and integration was being challenged by different ideas. Listen to some of these, below.
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THE END OF INNOCENCE
AND
CONSENSUS
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The Kennedy
Assassination: The Day the '60s Began Perhaps no event in the modern era is more engrained on our culture than the last assassination of a President of the United States. Certainly, no event has given life to a more disseminated set of conspiracy theories. Was President Kennedy killed by a single crazed gunman or a vast conspiracy?
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The Election of 1964 on Television
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By 1964 Television (T.V) was having a major impact on Presidential Elections, as almost all Americans now had T.V. From the 1952 Eisenhower campaign commercials excliaming "I like Ike" to the first televised debates in the close 1960 Election, which many believe helped John Kennedy beat Richard Nixon, the new media had changed politics. 1964 saw a full commercial campaign battle for a new and numerous T.V. audience. Click below to see the results.
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VIETNAM
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SIMULATION!You are President Lyndon Johnson, c. 1964. Can you successfully guide America through the turbulent mid-1960s? Let's see how your decision-making stands up to the test of time.
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SIMULATION!You are the most influential leader of North Vietnam, Ho Chi Minh, c. 1967. Can you successfully cause America to leave South Vietnam so you can unite North and South into one communist country? Let's see how your decision-making stands up to the test of time.
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Two Days
in October 
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"In October 1967, history turned a corner. In a jungle in Vietnam, a Viet Cong ambush nearly wiped out an American battalion, prompting some in power to question whether the war might be unwinnable. On a campus in Wisconsin, a student protest against the war spiraled out of control, marking the first time that a campus anti-war demonstration had turned violent.
From Robert Kenner, director of the groundbreaking film Food, Inc., Two Days in October tells the emotionally wrenching parallel stories. The film features firsthand accounts from the people whose lives were irrevocably changed by what happened — American and Viet Cong soldiers, relatives of men killed in battle, protesting students, police officers, and university faculty and administrators. Collectively, their words speak to the heartbreak caused by the war and the stark division it wrought on the home front. Two Days in October is based on the book They Marched Into Sunlight, by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist David Maraniss."
Winner of the 2005 Peabody Award and the 2006 Primetime Emmy for Exceptional Merit in Non-Fiction Filmmaking
From Robert Kenner, director of the groundbreaking film Food, Inc., Two Days in October tells the emotionally wrenching parallel stories. The film features firsthand accounts from the people whose lives were irrevocably changed by what happened — American and Viet Cong soldiers, relatives of men killed in battle, protesting students, police officers, and university faculty and administrators. Collectively, their words speak to the heartbreak caused by the war and the stark division it wrought on the home front. Two Days in October is based on the book They Marched Into Sunlight, by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist David Maraniss."
Winner of the 2005 Peabody Award and the 2006 Primetime Emmy for Exceptional Merit in Non-Fiction Filmmaking
War on T.V.
Some of the most famous videos and photographs of the Vietnam War. Never before had a war been covered in such a thorough way. On television every night, the images of the war helped turn many Americans against America's efforts to save South Vietnam from Communism. Warning. These are disturbing images.
The execution that shocks American sensibilities.
The napalm attack that sears the pain of war into the American psyche.
On June 8, 1972, South Vietnamese planes dropped a napalm bomb on Trảng Bàng, which had been attacked and occupied by North Vietnamese forces. Kim Phúc joined a group of civilians and South Vietnamese soldiers who were fleeing from the Caodai Temple to the safety of South Vietnamese-held positions.
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The news broadcast where America's most trusted anchor turns against the Vietnam conflict.
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"CBS News anchor Walter Cronkite went to Vietnam to provide viewers with an assessment of the war’s progress. His one-hour special report aired on Feb. 27, 1968."
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One Giant Leap
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In the context of the Cold War, American determination and skill produced the most dramatic moments of the 20th Century, ultimately reaching Luna (Our Moon) by 1968. The Apollo missions of NASA, built on the lessons of Gemini, Mercury, did more than highlight American exceptionalism--the landing on the Moon became humanity's great achievement, shared by the Astronauts involved with the world, despite the conflict that gripped the era. Please watch the great HBO series at left--it is not The Right Stuff or Apollo 13, but you will love it.
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1968:
The Year that Shaped a Generation
The Year that Shaped a Generation
Turbulent, deadly, controversial, and amazing. 1968 was a year of war, protests, riots, assassinations, murder, comebacks, and achievement. There have only been a handful of years in American history that so affected and changed the course of our Nation as did '68. Perhaps the only thing that saved this year at all was Apollo 8, and the emergence of a little light that shined in the darkness-Little Donny Ginn was born!
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IXc. Analyzing & Comparing Documents/SAQ/LEQ Practice
From The American Pageant Teacher Resource Guide, Cengage Learning
The 1960s: Construction or Destruction?
SAQ
EXCERPTS
Todd Gitlin, The Sixties: Years of Hope, Days of Rage (1987).
"Say what we will about the Sixties’ failures, limits, disasters, America’s political and cultural space would probably not have opened up as much as it did without the movement’s divine delirium. . . . This side of an ever-receding millennium, the changes wrought by the Sixties, however beleaguered, averted some of the worst abuses of power, and made life more decent for millions. The movement in its best moments and broadest definition made philosophical breakthroughs which are still working themselves out."
William O’Neill, Coming Apart (1971).
"Though much in the counter-culture was attractive and valuable, it was dangerous in three ways. First, self-indulgence frequently led to self-destruction. Second, the counter-culture increased social hostility. The generation gap was one example, but the class gap another. Working-class youngsters resented the counter-culture. The counter-culture flourished in cities and on campuses. Elsewhere, in Middle America, it was hated and feared. The result was a national division between the counter-culture and those adults who admired or tolerated it, and the silent majority of workers and Middle Americans who didn't. The tensions between these groups made solving social and political problems all the more difficult and were, indeed, part of the problem. Finally, the counter-culture was hell on standards."
QUESTIONS
Using the excerpts, answer parts a, b, and c.
a) Briefly explain ONE major difference between Gitlin and O’Neill’s historical interpretation of American society in the 1960s.
b) Briefly explain how ONE development from the period 1865 to 1898 not directly mentioned in the excerpts challenges Gitlin’s argument.
c) Briefly explain how ONE development from the period 1865 to 1898 not directly mentioned in the excerpts challenges O’Neill’s argument.
EXCERPTS
Todd Gitlin, The Sixties: Years of Hope, Days of Rage (1987).
"Say what we will about the Sixties’ failures, limits, disasters, America’s political and cultural space would probably not have opened up as much as it did without the movement’s divine delirium. . . . This side of an ever-receding millennium, the changes wrought by the Sixties, however beleaguered, averted some of the worst abuses of power, and made life more decent for millions. The movement in its best moments and broadest definition made philosophical breakthroughs which are still working themselves out."
William O’Neill, Coming Apart (1971).
"Though much in the counter-culture was attractive and valuable, it was dangerous in three ways. First, self-indulgence frequently led to self-destruction. Second, the counter-culture increased social hostility. The generation gap was one example, but the class gap another. Working-class youngsters resented the counter-culture. The counter-culture flourished in cities and on campuses. Elsewhere, in Middle America, it was hated and feared. The result was a national division between the counter-culture and those adults who admired or tolerated it, and the silent majority of workers and Middle Americans who didn't. The tensions between these groups made solving social and political problems all the more difficult and were, indeed, part of the problem. Finally, the counter-culture was hell on standards."
QUESTIONS
Using the excerpts, answer parts a, b, and c.
a) Briefly explain ONE major difference between Gitlin and O’Neill’s historical interpretation of American society in the 1960s.
b) Briefly explain how ONE development from the period 1865 to 1898 not directly mentioned in the excerpts challenges Gitlin’s argument.
c) Briefly explain how ONE development from the period 1865 to 1898 not directly mentioned in the excerpts challenges O’Neill’s argument.
LEQ
PROMPT
Evaluate the extent to which the counter-culture and social movements of the 1960s fundamentally transformed American political and social life.
PROMPT
Evaluate the extent to which the counter-culture and social movements of the 1960s fundamentally transformed American political and social life.
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Clothing Styles of the 1960s & 1970s
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The Watergate Scandal
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After the Vietnam experience, the Pentagon Papers' release, and the Zapruder film of the Kennedy assassination, the Watergate scandal becomes the last nail in the coffin of inherent trust and confidence in the American government. It also destroys a presidency. Watch the video to learn about the break in that changed American history.
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SIMULATION!
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You are President Richard Nixon, c. 1969. You are tasked with guiding America through one of its most divisive periods in its history (You think it's today?) Let's see how your decision-making stands up to the test of time.
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President
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Specifically, blowback from the Watergate scandal, and President Ford's pardoning of President Richard Nixon, helped lead to a Washington outsider from Georgia winning the presidency. President Jimmy Carter would face some of the toughest dilemmas of the century.
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The Century: Live From Tehran (ABC)
How did one event, in 1979, help to doom a presidency and set the stage for over 40 years of confrontation between the United States and fundamental Islam? Watch the video to find out. Amazing! The late, great Peter Jennings. The Century series was groundbreaking!
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SIMULATION!
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You are President Jimmy Carter, c. 1979. Can you successfully deal with America's greatest hostage crisis in history? Let's see how your decision-making stands up to the test of time.
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IXd. Exam Skills: Non-Stimulus SAQ
From The American Pageant Teacher Resource Guide, Cengage Learning
Liberalism and Conservatism in the 1970s
From The American Pageant Teacher Resource Guide, Cengage Learning
Liberalism and Conservatism in the 1970s
SAQ
QUESTIONS
Answer parts a, b, and c.
a) Briefly explain how conservatives in the 1970s viewed the power of the federal government.
b) Briefly explain how liberals in the 1970s viewed the power of the presidency and the federal government.
c) Briefly identify ONE event in the 1970s relating to the power of the federal government that caused a clash between conservatives and liberals.
QUESTIONS
Answer parts a, b, and c.
a) Briefly explain how conservatives in the 1970s viewed the power of the federal government.
b) Briefly explain how liberals in the 1970s viewed the power of the presidency and the federal government.
c) Briefly identify ONE event in the 1970s relating to the power of the federal government that caused a clash between conservatives and liberals.
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Lecture: The Cold War, 1945-1991.
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From President Truman to President Bush, no one factor had ever influenced the course of our nation's history like the struggle to contain and erode the influence of international Communism.
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THE BIRTH OF HIP HOP
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The Case:
"A hip hop enthusiast from New York City has always heard that 1520 Sedgwick Avenue in the Bronx is the birthplace of hip hop. The story goes that on August 11, 1973 DJ Kool Herc, a building resident, was entertaining at his sister’s back-to-school party, and tried something new on the turntable: he extended an instrumental beat (breaking or scratching) to let people dance longer (break dancing) and began MC’ing (rapping) during the extended breakdancing. This, the contributor believes, marked the birth of hip hop. The music led to an entire cultural movement that’s altered generational thinking – from politics and race to art and language. History Detectives sets out to examine an inner city environment that helped lay the foundation for a cultural revolution." (Season 6, Episode 11) |
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The "Sagebrush Revolution:" The
Reagan Era & Conservatism
Reagan Era & Conservatism
The Legacy of Ronald Reagan is still being debated, shaped, and determined. What made this man the leading heroic figure of modern conservatism, and, for others, the heartless director of pitiless economic theory and warmongering?
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SIMULATION!
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You are President Ronald Reagan, c. 1981. Can you successfully improve the nation's ailing economy, and handle the dangers of the Cold War? Let's see how your decision-making stands up to the test of time.
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IXe. Analyzing & Comparing Documents/SAQ Practice
From The American Pageant Teacher Resource Guide, Cengage Learning
Where did modern Conservatism come from?
From The American Pageant Teacher Resource Guide, Cengage Learning
Where did modern Conservatism come from?
SAQ
EXCERPTS
Daniel Bell, ed., The Radical Right (1963).
"Anti-elitism oriented toward groups that cannot be regarded as oppressed minorities or victims of bigotry, or anti-Communism directed against the agents or dupes of an evil foreign power, can serve as palatable outlets for those who require a scapegoat…. Intolerant movements, while often powerful, have never been able seriously to endanger the normal processes of American democracy…. But if such movements cannot come to power, they can damage the democratic process for short periods of time, and they can and have injured innocent people."
Kevin Phillips, Post-Conservative America (1982).
"I submit that the New Right combines three powerful trend patterns that recur in American history and politics. First, to some measure it is an extension of the Wallace movement, and as such represents a current expression of the ongoing populism of the white lower middle classes, principally in the South and West....Second, the New Right is closely allied with the sometimes potent right-to-life or antiabortion movement, the current version, perhaps, of the great one-issue moral crusades of the American past....And this one-issue element, in turn, folds into the third phenomenon—the possible fourth occurrence of the religious revivals or ‘Great Awakenings’ that have swept across the land since the middle of the eighteenth century. If so, the religious wing of the New Right may be the political wing of a major national awakening."
SUMMARY
Bell-A view of modern conservatism as an extremist and paranoid fringe movement
Phillips-A view of modern conservatism as more deeply rooted in American history
EXCERPTS
Daniel Bell, ed., The Radical Right (1963).
"Anti-elitism oriented toward groups that cannot be regarded as oppressed minorities or victims of bigotry, or anti-Communism directed against the agents or dupes of an evil foreign power, can serve as palatable outlets for those who require a scapegoat…. Intolerant movements, while often powerful, have never been able seriously to endanger the normal processes of American democracy…. But if such movements cannot come to power, they can damage the democratic process for short periods of time, and they can and have injured innocent people."
Kevin Phillips, Post-Conservative America (1982).
"I submit that the New Right combines three powerful trend patterns that recur in American history and politics. First, to some measure it is an extension of the Wallace movement, and as such represents a current expression of the ongoing populism of the white lower middle classes, principally in the South and West....Second, the New Right is closely allied with the sometimes potent right-to-life or antiabortion movement, the current version, perhaps, of the great one-issue moral crusades of the American past....And this one-issue element, in turn, folds into the third phenomenon—the possible fourth occurrence of the religious revivals or ‘Great Awakenings’ that have swept across the land since the middle of the eighteenth century. If so, the religious wing of the New Right may be the political wing of a major national awakening."
SUMMARY
Bell-A view of modern conservatism as an extremist and paranoid fringe movement
Phillips-A view of modern conservatism as more deeply rooted in American history
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CAUSE AND EFFECT
Clothing Styles of the 1980s |
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SIMULATION!
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You are General Schwartzkopf, 1991. Can you successfully lead a coalition to remove Iraq's Sodom Hussein from Kuwait, and liberate that country? Let's see how your decision-making stands up to the test of time.
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